The Long Forgotten

By David Whitehouse Picador, 304pp, £14.99

The Long Forgotten tells the story of a London call centre worker called Dove, who is more than a little taken aback when he suddenly starts to remember another person’s memories. As a result, his lonely existence becomes much more complicated as he gets tangled up with a crime scene cleaner in New York – not to mention a quest for rare flowers, and a mysterious plane crash. Encompassing everything from the mundanity of call centre life to sheep-eating plants and a scene in which a black box recorder is retrieved from the belly of a whale, journalist David Whitehouse’s latest novel is gripping tale that careers around the globe, slipping effortlessly between the everyday and exotic melodrama. A thoughtprovoking read which deftly explores the internal lives of people on the margins and notions of memory, family and identity. ■